This column is the first in a new series of retrospectives dedicated to the memories of presidents past.
Today we celebrate the memory of William Henry Harrison, the 9th president of these United States.
Harrison’s presidency was brief yet historic. A military veteran and a member of the Whig Party, he was sworn in as president in 1840 at the age of 68, making him the oldest person to take the oath of office until Ronald Reagan in 1981. If elected, Hillary Clinton would be 69 upon taking office.
Harrison was born in the colony of Virginia in 1773, making him the last U.S. president to be born a subject of the British Empire. He died just 32 days after taking office, becoming the first president to die in office, and the shortest serving president in history, a record that still stands.
Harrison came down with a cold after giving the longest inaugural address in history on a chilly, wet day in March 1841. He later contracted a pneumonia, and died of complications from the lung ailment, which continues to afflict politicians to this day. He was 68 years old.
His service to this country will not be forgotten.
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